First all-female group from Dumaguete successfully swims across Tañon Strait

DUMAGUETE CITY — Despite the rough waters caused by bad weather, six female swimmers from this city successfully crossed the Tañon Strait on Sunday, becoming the first all-female group to cross the channel from Santander, Cebu to Sibulan, Negros Oriental.

Dumagueteñas Maru Rodriguez, Dr. Frances Yap, Sheila Omaguing, Flom Barot-Datoy, and sisters Ching and Monique Furbeyre—collectively called the "Ocean 6"—swam 6.4 kilometers to cross the Tañon Strait for three and half hours, three times earlier than their initial estimated swimming time of nine hours.

_{^{The Ocean Six (from left to right): Monique Furbeyre, Maru Rodriguez, Sheila Omaguing, Flom Barot-Datoy, Dr. Frances Yap, and Ching Furbeyre. (Photo courtesy of Sentidos Production)}}

"Until now, it hasn't sunk in that we were able to do it," Yap told GMA News in an interview on Monday.

Asked how they managed to overcome the challenge despite the odds initially being against them, the women replied that they were determined enough to see it through and they just wanted to "keep swimming."

The group left Barangay Liloan in Santander at around 6:30 a.m. Sunday and arrived at Barangay Cangmating in Sibulan around 9:40 a.m. From Cangmating, they continued swimming north to Barangay Campaclan, their supposed arrival point around three kilometers away. There they were greeted by cheers from locals and spectators alike.

Crossing the Tañon Strait was no easy task, especially for the six who, after training together for at least a month, had to change some of their plans at the last minute.

"The Philippine Coast Guard initially asked to call off the event," Rodriguez said, adding that the waves off Sibulan were so rough that one of the boats from their support group broke its propeller.

Nine boats were supposed to accompany them for the crossing, but only three made it at first. Fortunately, the remaining five boats caught up with them in the middle of the channel.

Aside from the choppy waves, the six also faced the challenge of having to deal with jellyfishes; they ended up with several rashes on their bodies. But that did not stop them from pushing through.

The six added that the support from their team and their swimming coach, Mr. Dionesio Piñero of Silliman University, was also vital to their successful crossing.

News of their story immediately went viral on social media, and because of their successful crossing, the six said they have received several queries from female swimmers asking to join them in their second attempt next year.
"We're glad to have inspired a lot of our fellow women, and we plan to make this a yearly cause," Rodriguez said.

Their successful crossing was in line with the celebration of the International Women's Month this March. "Our mantra is 'She believed she could, so she did.' We did this because we wanted to show that women can do anything," Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez also shared that they were only ordinary women with the passion for swimming.

"We're not your typical athletes, and this is also part of our message. We're breaking the stereotypes of a strong woman, because there is no one definition of what a strong woman is," she told GMA News.

Moreover, she said that the group also hopes to bring the message of taking care of the ocean and preserving the waters through their successful crossing. "Along the way, we noticed a lot of garbage along the strait," Rodriguez added.

With an area covering 521,018 hectares, the Tañon Strait is the largest marine protected area in the Philippines, situated between the coasts of Negros Island and Cebu.

Although several swimmers have previously crossed the strait including Comelec lawyer Ingemar Macarine, this was the first time an all-female group did so.

The six also shared that their crossing has strengthened their friendship. "We have been good friends before as we have similar personalities and we all love swimming. But because of Tañon Strait, we will forever be bonded together," Rodriguez said. —KBK, GMA News